


clinch

by rincewitch



Series: Warrior of Moonlight [3]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: F/M, amaurot long before the fall, in which the convocation Works As Intended
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:00:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,275
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26292271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rincewitch/pseuds/rincewitch
Summary: ffxiv write 2020 day 4: clinchThe only ones left, then, were Lahabrea, defending a concept one of the rising stars of his Word at the Akadaemia had engendered; Azem, calling for its permanent shelving; Emet-Selch himself, who agreed with Azem but at this point was seriously wondering if this was worth all the trouble; and poor Elidibus stuck doing what the Emissary must do to when the Convocation is divided against itself-- trying to find enough common ground to bring it back together.Well, Halmarut was there, too, but he was slumped over on the conference table, fast asleep. The lucky bastard.“You’re overcautious to a fault, Azem,” Lahabrea said, “Clearly, the public good needs to be be considered, but we already have a system in place for that: the Bureau of the fucking Architect. One would think you, of all people, would be aware of that, given that you’re literally fucking the Architect--”“Lahabrea,” Elidibus cut in, his tone cautioning, “I once again ask that you refrain from making personal attacks against your fellow Convocation members. Argue your point, if you please, not Azem’s character.”
Relationships: Azem & Elidibus (Final Fantasy XIV), Azem & Lahabrea, Azem/Solus zos Galvus | Emet-Selch, Elidibus & Solus zos Galvus | Emet-Selch
Series: Warrior of Moonlight [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1905535
Comments: 9
Kudos: 33
Collections: #FFxivWrite2020 Final Fantasy 30 Day Writing Challenge, Emet-Selch's Wholesomely Debauched Bookclub FFXIV-Writes 2020 Collection





	clinch

_At times you will stand with us. At times you will stand against us. All that you might steer mankind and the very star upon their true course. For yours is the seat of Elidibus, the Emissary, and by this name shall your every action be guided._

* * *

The Convocation has been in session for nearly twenty-four hours without making any headway in resolving the dispute, and Emet-Selch was rapidly losing what little patience he had left.

Although perhaps “the Convocation” was too strong a word for those still gathered in the chamber. Much earlier in the day, Nabriales moved that they adjourn for lunch, and then simply never came back. As the session dragged on and the extent to which they were deadlocked sunk in, the rest of the Convocation slipped out of the Capitol one by one.

The only ones left, then, were Lahabrea, defending a concept one of the rising stars of his Word at the Akadaemia had engendered; Azem, calling for its permanent shelving; Emet-Selch himself, who agreed with Azem but at this point was seriously wondering if this was worth all the trouble; and poor Elidibus stuck doing what the Emissary must do to when the Convocation is divided against itself-- trying to find enough common ground to bring it back together.

Well, Halmarut was there, too, but he was slumped over on the conference table, fast asleep. The lucky bastard.

“You’re overcautious to a fault, Azem,” Lahabrea said, _“Clearly,_ the public good needs to be be considered, but we already have a system in place for that: the _Bureau of the fucking Architect._ One would think _you,_ of all people, would be aware of that, given that you’re _literally_ fucking the Architect--”

“Lahabrea,” Elidibus cut in, his tone cautioning, “I once again ask that you refrain from making personal attacks against your fellow Convocation members. Argue your point, if you please, not Azem’s character.”

Lahabrea glowered, but didn’t dispute the warning. “My _point_ is that it’s no business of ours to gainsay decisions properly arrived at. To do so undermines the very institutions that we are meant to support. Or would _you,_ Emet-Selch, disown your own bureau’s officials?”

“I _would,_ actually. _I_ might be completely infallible--” Emet-Selch began, before he’s interrupted by Azem stifling a laugh, “But I can’t say the same for every Thoma, Stoukos, and Errikos who manages to get hired on as a clerk. You _know_ how hard it is to hire good help, these days.” 

“Look,” Azem said, composing herself again, “Lahabrea. It’s a porcupine the size of a small house that can befoul water supplies just by looking at ‘em. The thing’s a _menace._ I don’t know why anyone would have created the thing in the first place, much less how it could’ve been approved for engenderment.”

Lahabrea scoffed. “It’s not just a porcupine the size of a small house that befouls water supplies. It’s a _four-dimensional_ porcupine the size of a small house that befouls water supplies. It’s the largest living and stable multidimensional concept anyone’s made in over a century! A few _safety issues_ aren’t any reason to throw that away-- especially when Amaurot has the infrastructure to stop a few stray concepts from cauting any _real_ damage.”

Azem actually sprung from her chair, her golden eyes blazing with anger. _“Not everywhere is Amaurot!”_ she snarled, “There’s a whole world out there! I just spent half a month hunting down one of those things after an entire _village_ lost its only source of potable water and the surrounding forest’s ecosystem nearly collapsed. Lives outside the city mean something. Evolved biodiversity is as worth our time and attention as engendered biodiversity.”

Emet-Selch wasn’t sure if he’d go _that_ far, truth be told. The uncurated life that multiplied and mutated away from prying Amaurotine eyes lacked any sort of _artistry._ Just random, undirected potential. Still, he richly enjoyed seeing how passionate Azem-- his Persephone-- could get over this, and the broader thrust of her point was correct. Shouldn’t people outside of Amaurot have what people inside of Amaurot do? Civilization hardly stopped at the city limits, after all.

“We’re going in circles,” Elidibus said, “It’s clear that neither of you are going to sway the other to their side with debate alone; compromise is necessary. Azem’s stake in the matter is clear-- she sees the danger this concept poses to the world without Amaurot as outweighing the potential benefits for the world within. Emet-Selch, are you in agreement with her?”

“Well, more or less,” he said, with a shrug, “It just looks _bad_ when rogue concepts fly around eating unsuspecting yokels or polluting wells or other things of that sort. Horrible publicity. Makes it look like we really _don’t_ have a handle on things here.”

Elidibus noded. “Lahabrea, you have argued against Azem’s point, but what, exactly, is your stake in this? In what way does this concept benefit the public good?”

Lahabrea folded his arms. “Research. This particular concept is-- I begrudgingly admit-- not terribly useful in its current form. However, the techniques employed in its creation are nothing short of _revolutionary._ It could push the art and science of engenderment ahead by _centuries--_ if we’re brave enough not to flinch away from it.” He directed a withering look in Azem’s direction. “And I don’t know why _you_ can’t see that. For all that you’re a naive fool, you’re still an academic-- the name _Persephone_ still carries weight in phytobiology quite separate from your subsequent elevation to this Convocation.” He sighs, and seems to deflate a bit. “In any case… this is someone’s _thesis_ we’re talking about.”

“These competing concerns are not mutually exclusive,” Elidibus said, measured and soft-spoken as ever, even as tempers elsewhere flared, “They can both be accommodated-- provided each of you is willing to cede a little ground to the other to clinch the deal. If we have the concept matrix transferred to the archives at Anamnesis Anyder, it will be available for retrieval, study and engenderment by accredited scholars, without entering the general circulation as concepts stored at the Bureau of the Architect do.” He looked at Lahabrea and Azem in turn, although precisely what kind of look he gave them was hidden by the carved eyes of his mask, which he’d kept on even as the others present had abandoned them over the long day in the frankly rather stuffy chambers of the Capitol. “Are these terms the two of you can live with?”

“I _guess,”_ Azem said, “I’m not happy with it, but it _is_ some guy’s thesis, so it’d be kind of shitty to just flush it down the toilet. If Anamnesis Anyder promises to notify us every time it’s summoned…”

“Ah,” Emet-Selch interjected, “That’s what they did with that minotaur or cyclops or whatever which makes hammers explode out of the floor Hythlodaeus made that one time.”

“Why… why did Hythlodaeus make something like that?” Elidibus asked, his curiosity apparently getting the better of him.

“It was a dare,” Emet-Selch said, fondly.

“I see,” Elidibus said, “ _Anyroad._ Lahabrea, are these terms acceptable to _you?”_

“I suppose they’ll have to be,” Lahabrea said, “Let the record show that I’m _extremely_ unhappy with them, though. It’s ridiculous that students at the Akadaemia will have to hike all the way out to Anamnesis for this, but I shall magnanimously put this concern aside for the sake of compromise.”

Thus it was the Convocation, as it rarely was, divided over the fate of the star. Yet thanks to Elidibus’s efforts, it was fleeting as ever. Emet-Selch had to appreciate that.

Even if Elidibus _was_ a bit of a prig.


End file.
